However the initiative system also introduces a marker, in that I place a dice next to each aircraft showing its initiative roll. The initiative system annoys me for two reasons. One is that; I have clutter on the table. The other is that I have to make a roll for each plane, and I just find that a touch clumsy; it doesn't quite give the the game I was looking for.
Over the past week or so I have been considering a different means of determining initiative, by using a single roll for each side. One idea was simply that - players roll a D6 and the highest has initiative. But this doesn't take into account the capabilities of the planes or pilots. And I didn't want one side moving all of their aircraft before the other does; not as a default, anyway. I could have players alternate moving planes, but again this doesn't really give the feel I wanted.
What I am currently considering is this.
At the start of a turn both sides roll a D6 for initiative. Modify as follows:
+1 if you have the highest Agility plane on the board
-1 if you have the lowest Agility plane on the board
+1 if you have the highest Quality pilot on the board
-1 if you have the lowest Quality pilot on the board
When assessing modifiers, if both players have the highest Quality pilot (for example each side has one or more Aces) then neither gets the modifier. The same applied to aircraft Agility; if the best planes on both sides are Agility B, neither side gets the bonus.
Lowest modified roll is '1' and highest modified roll is '6'.
In the event of a tied roll the player with the most aircraft in play has initiative, otherwise roll again.
The player with initiative selects a board edge. The planes move in order of closest to that edge first, through to those furthest from the edge. In the rare event of a tie, the lowest Quality pilot goes first and if that is tied the lowest Agility. Otherwise the player without initiative moves first.
The advantage of this is that it's a single initiative roll each turn, and the modifiers are generally the same from turn to turn. For example, in the game I played yesterday, the Germans have the highest Agility plane (the two EIIIs) so get a +1. The Australians have the lowest Agility plane (the BE2) so get a -1. Neither side has the highest Quality pilot - both side's best pilot is Experienced. But the Germans have the lowest quality pilot.
So the Germans get a net 0 (+1 for best planes but -1 for worst pilot), whilst the Australians get -1 (worst plane).
Have I tried this? No. Will I try it. Probably. I'll let you know.
Hello, thank you for the rules. I tried them and I like very much. I especially like their solitaire usability. Do you think they could be used or adapted for WW2 too?
ReplyDeleteIt might be possible I guess, but WWII air combat isn't really my thing, so I have no idea. The issues would be a wider range of speeds and performance capabilities, and also a broader spectrum of gunnery. In WW1 you're dealing with one or two machine-guns. In WWII you have to deal with everything from a single MG to multiple auto-cannons or rockets. It possibly needs a different approach.
DeleteI really like the concept of selecting a specific table edge as a base to work the turn, for that turn. In the past I have tried systems where each side rolls a die and the winner selects the pilot level that will go first (rookie, veteran, ace) and then whether the order will be up or down. Then each player activates in turn (alternating) a pilot of that value and work in order up or down till all have gone. It usually works pretty well, though there have been unlikely instances where Veterans go first, then Aces and you find that there may be a half dozen rookies that go last and all end up taking shots at an Ace. I don't have to tell you, but the odds eventually do catch up and a lot of Aces get downed by rookies (but the opposite is also true).
ReplyDeleteLooking forwards to seeing how this new initiative systems works out!